Conveyer.



PATENTED OCT. 25, 1904. M. T. ASH.

CONVEYER.

APPLIOATION FILED mo. 26, 190s..

` 3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

NO MODEL.

No. 773,452. PATBNTBD OCT. 25, 1904.. M. T. ASH.

CONVEYER.

APPLIOATION FILED Dnze, 1903-. No MODEL. la sHnnTsFsHBBT z.'

No.. 773,452. l PATENTED OCT. 25, 1904.

M. T. ASH. l CONVEYER.

- APPLICATION FILED DB0. 2e, 1903. Y l No MODEL. s SHEETS-SHEET a.

llNrTnD STATES Patented october 25, 190e.

PATENT Ormea.

CONVEYER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,452, dated Octobery25, 1904.

Application iile December 26, 1903. Serial No. 186,612. (No model.)

To @ZZ wiz/0m, t 71am/ concern:

Be it known that I, MARsnLIUs 'I`. ASH, a citi- Zen of the UnitedStates, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State ofIllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inConveyers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactspecification.

My invention relates to that class of conveyers usually comprisingchains running over sprockets or other driving-wheels and supporting theconveyer-buckets; and my invention has for one of its important objectsto provide improved means whereby ropes or cables may be substituted forsuch chains without permitting one of the cables or one side of theconveyer to lag behind the other.

Another object of the invention is to provide the sheaves by which theropes or cables are driven with automatic gripping means, which willprevent them from slipping; and a further object of the invention is toprovide an improved and simple device for attaching the buckets to thecables at any desired point.

lith these ends in view my invention consists in certain features ofnovelty in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts bywhich the said objects and certain other objects hereinafter appearingare attained, all as fully described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the said drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of my improvedconveyer mechanism, partly broken away and partly in section. Fig. 2 isan enlarged detail side elevation of the clip for attaching the bucketto the cable. Fig. Quis a longitudinal section thereof. Fig. 3 is asection thereof on the line 3 3, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a transverse sectionof the conveyer mechanism on the line 4 4, Fig. l. Fig. 5 is a detailsection on the line 5 5, Fig. 4, showing one of the ratchet-wheelsbroken away and on an enlarged scale. Fig. 6 is a detail side elevationof the ratchet mechanism. Fig. 7 is a vertical section thereof on theline 7 7 Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a plan view thereof. Fig. 9 is an enlargedtransverse section of the rim of the driving-sheave, taken on the line 99, Fig. lO, showing the clutch; and Fig. 10 is a side elevation thereof.

l 2 are two ropes or cables running parallel with each other and whichare substitutes for the sprocket-chains or belts heretofore employed forsupporting the conveyer-buckets 3 and are usually, but not necessarily,continuous. In the drawings one lap or fold only of the ropes or cablesl 2 is shown; but

sheaves 5 being drivers mounted on a suitable driving-shaft 6, derivingits motion from a gear 7, connected in any appropriate way with asuitable source of power not necessary to illustrate and impartingrotation to the sheaves 5 through the intermediary of the improvedmechanism which will be presently described. rIhe buckets 3 are providedwith trunnions 8 on both sides, mounted in side wheels 9, which run onsuitable rails or tracks l0, as usual in mechanism of this character,thus supporting the buckets independently of the ropes or cables 1 2,which are employed for propelling the buckets along the rails.

In conveyer mechanisms of this character sprocket-chains instead ofthecables l 2 have heretofore been regarded as the most appropriatemeans of propelling the buckets, because such chains in conjunction withthe sprocket-wheels employed in the place of the sheaves 4 5 are able topropel the buckets without getting out of time with each otherthat is tosay, without one chain either creeping ahead or lagging behind theother-thus giving the buckets a wrong position on their tracks or railsl0 and eventually causing them to meet with accident or becomeinoperative, and while the ropes or cables heretofore employed have beenopen to these objections the chains, on the other hand, are alsoobjectionable in that they are expensive and owing to the great amountof dust and grit employed in mechanisms of this character they soon wearout. In order, therefore, that the cables may be employed as substitutesfor chains without these objections, I provide automatic mechanismwhereby either side of the conveyer--that is, either of the cables-willbe IOO advanced sufficiently to bring the buckets into a positionexactly square with their line of movement as soon as that side lagsbehind, or, generically stated, the cables or sides of the conveyer areadjusted relatively before they lose their proper relation to anymaterial degree, and in the exemplitication of my invention shown in thedrawings this is preferably accomplished by advancing the lagging sideinstead of retarding the advanced side. To this end the sheaves 5 aremounted loosely upon driving-shaft 6 and held in place by any suitablemeans, such as collars 11, and each of said sheaves is connected to anindependent driving' mechanism, said driving mechanisms being duplicatesof cach other, and therefore a description of one will suffice for both.The side ofthe sheave opposite the collar 11 is formed with a sleeve 12,which is secured to or formed on a ratchet-wheel 13, constituting one ofthe members of such driving` mechanism, and which ratchet is alsoloosely mounted upon the shaft 6, but adjacent to the ratchet and keyedto the shaft is a pawl-arm 14, which carries a pawl 15, engaging withthe teeth of the ratchet, and consequently serving to drive the sheave 5when the shaft 6 is rotated, and thereby impart motion to the cables 1 2for propelling the buckets. Pivoted at 16 to the outer end of therevolving arm 14 is a lever 17, carrying a second pawl 18, also engagingthe teeth of the ratchet 13, andthe inner end of this arm 17 carries astud or antifrictionroller 19, engaging in a cam 20, havingacirn cularcam groove or way 21, in which the stud or antifriction-roller 19engages, and from one side of which way or groove 21 leads a branch wayor groove 22, which, together with one-half of the way or groove 21,constitutes an elongated or oval-shaped way, in which the stud or roller19 at times may be caused to travel. Under normal conditions, however,the stud or roller 19 remains in the circular way 21 as the pawl-arm -14revolves with the shaft 6, and consequently the lever 17 does not atsuch time vchange its relation to the arm 14; but it is obvious that ifduring the revolution of the arm 14 in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 5the stud or roller 19 should be switched or defiected into thebranch 22 of the cam-groove the lever 17 would be caused to moveoutwardly at its lower end as the roller 19 approached the outer end ofthe branch 22, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5, and then moveinwardly to its inner place as the roller19 again neared the circularway 21. In doing this the pawl 18 would of course be first draggedbackwardly over the teeth of ratchet 13 and then advancedagainst saidteeth, pushing the ratchet-wheel 13 forward faster than the movement ofthe pawl 15 as the roller 19 returned to its former position, (indicatedin full lines in Fig. 5.) In doing' this that one of the sheaves 5 towhich the ratchet 13 thus acted or attached would cause its cable tomove forward faster than the cable on the other side, and consequentlycompensate for any lag that might have been caused by extra strain orstretching of one cable or shrinkage of the other. Until suchirregularity in the position of the buckets or cables occurs the roller19 will travel in its circular way 21 and the lever 17 will remaininert; but when such irregularity occurs the roller 19 will be switchedfrom its circular way 21 by a suitable Vswitch 23, provided in the cam20 and having two projections or ends 24 25, the former of which isadapted to be thrown upwardly to intercept the roller 19 and cause it totravel in the branch groove 22, and the latter end or projection 25,which constitutes a trip, is adapted to stand partially across thebranch groove 22 when the end 24 intercepts the circular groove 21, sothat the trip 25 will be engaged by the roller 19 and the switch therebyimmediately returned to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 5, thuspreventing the roller 19 from making more than one excursion around thebranch 22 until the switch 23 is again thrown upwardly. The switch 23 isthus actuated to deflect the roller 19 from the'circular groove 21 by arocker-arm 26, (see Fig. 6,) secured to a rocker-shaft 27, on which theswitch 23 is mounted, and with a crank-pin 28, on which rocker-arm 26engages the lower end of arod 29, whose upper end has connection withany suitable mechanism for causing the rod 29 to be depressed in theevent the end of the bucket 3 on the opposite side of the conveyershould go ahead of the other end. For eX- ample, the upper end of therod 29 is pivoted to one end of a lever 30, supported in a suitablehanger 31 and pivotally connected to one end of a walking-beam 32, whichhasa slot 33, whereby it may be supported on a pivot 34, pivoted on asuitable hanger 35. The opposite end of walking-beam 32 is pivotallysecured to a lever 36, supportedfrom a hanger 37, and this lever 36 inturn is pivoted to the upper end of an operating-rod 38, arranged on theside of the conveyer opposite the rod 29 and connected at its lower endto the rockerarm 26 on that side. On both sides of the conveyer atsuitable intervals apart vare arranged traveling trips 39, which movewith the cables 1 2 and bear a fixed relation to the ends of the bucketsor to the track-wheels 9. 1f desired, these trips 39 may be mounted uponthe journal-boxes or trunnions 3, and they are adapted to engage withshoes 40, one of which is arranged over each of the cables and in linewith the trips 39 traveling therewith, and these shoes 40 are secured tothe lower ends of two rods 41 42, respectively, whose upper ends arepivotally connected to the walking-beam 32, the rods 41 42 being held bysuitable guides 43 and supported in their proper relation to the shoes40 by any IOO ICS

IIO

suitable stops, such as collars 44, secured thereto and adapted tostrike the upper ends of the guides 43, each of the rods 41 42, if desired, being also pulled downwardly into normal position by spring 45.

Tit-h the mechanism thus described it will be seen that should the trips39 on any one of the buckets be in proper alinement with each other-thatis, in a line at right angles to the cables-they will strike and lifttheir respective shoes 40 simultaneously and the walking-beam 32 will belifted bodily with reference to its pivot 34, and consequently both rods29 38 will be simultaneously elevated without actuatingl or molestingeither of the rockerarms 26, which control the switches 23; but shouldone of the trips 39 be slightly in advance of the other, or suflcientlyso to cause one of the shoes 40 to lift in advance of the other one, theshoe 40, which is first raised, will push upwardly on its rod 41 or 42and tilt the walking-beam 32. Thus, for example, supposing the rod 41 tobe the one pushed upwardly in advance of' the other, it would lift therod 29 and by pulling downwardlyon the lever 36 depress the rod 38against rocker-arm 26, and thereby throw the switch 23 upwardly on theside of the conveyer opposite the rod 41 which was first to rise, and bythus lifting` switch 23 throw into operation the ratchet mechanismcontrolling the ratchet 18 and advance the cable on that side. If theadvance thus effected by one oscillation of the ratchet-lever 17 shouldnot be sufficient to bring the bucket into proper position, or at rightangles to the cables, the operation would be repeated as soon as thetrip 39 on the next bucket reaches the 'shoe 40.

1n order that the rods 29 38 may rise simultaneously, as beforedescribed, without operating the rocker-arms 26, the connection betweensaid rocker-arms and rods is effected by means of a slot 46, enablingthe rod to slide over the pin 28 when rising and to engage and depressthe pin when descending. The switch 23 may be held in position untilpositively tripped by rocker-arm 26 in one direction or by the trip 25in the other direction by a spring 47, fixed to one end ofthe cam 2O andat the other end to the rocker-arm 26 in such a way as to hold the arm26 on either side of the center in which it may be placed, the arm 26being thrown downwardly by the rod 41 or 42 and thrown upwardly by thetrip 25 when engaget'l by roller 19.

1t is of course understood that the cam 2O is fixed with relation to therevolving pawlarm 14, and this may be accomplished in any suitable way,as by bracket 48, secured to the standard 49, which supports the end ofshaft 6.

In order that the d riving-sheaves 5 may grip the cables with sufficientfirmness to propel them materially, such sheaves are provided withautomatic grips. (Shown more clearly in detail in Figs. 9 and l0.) Thesegrips com- 65 downwardly against the cable.

of the box, therefore, are formed with projecprise jaws 50, each pivotedin a pair'of slides 51, secured to the side of the sheave 5 by means ofbolts or screws 52, passing through slots 53 in the slides, and eachslide is connected to an adjusting-screw 54, threaded in a boss 55,formed on or secured to the side of the sheave, so that the slides maybe adjusted lengthwise of the radius of the sheave, and thereby changethe relation of the jaw 50 to the rope or cable. Where each of these'jaws 50 is situated the sheave is provided with a recess 56 forreceiving the jaw, and the outer end of each jaw is formed with a notchconstituting two fingers 57 58, in which notch or between which fingersthe cable rests, the notch being substantially but not accurately inline with the groove in the sheave, so that the cable will run in boththe notch and the sheave-groove, but will bear in the notch beforebearing in the groove, and by thus pressing against the inner finger 57of the jaw will throw the jaw inwardly on its pivot 59, which issituated to one side of the plane of the sheave-groove, and therebycause the outer finger 58 to press inwardly and impinge the cable. Thisgripping action may be modified or intensified, as conditions require,by raising or -lowering the slides 51. Each sheave may be provided withas many of these jaws 50 as desired. In this example of the inventionfour are shown.

As a means of attaching the cables to the buckets .l may employ anysuitable clip, but preferably the form shown in the drawings, andcomprising a U-shaped band 60, composed, preferably, of thin sheetmetal, passing around the under side of the cable and having both of itsupper branches provided with two slots through which pass T-heads 61 62,formed on the lower ends of T-bolts 63 64, respectivelyvhich passupwardly through a block 65, saddled on the top of the cable between thebranches of the U-shaped band and being slotted in its upper side, 'asshown at 66,. for the introduction of the T- head 62,'so that when theband 6() is pulled upwardly with relation to the block 65 or the latteris pushed downwardly with relation to the band the cable will becorrespondingly gripped. The band 60 is shown ascut out to fit aroundthe under side of journal-box 67, in which axle 8 is journaled, and theupper ends of the bolts 63 64 are shown as being utilized for thetwofold purpose of securing TOO ITO

the cable-clipto the box and forcing the block The sides tions or bosses68, which fit between the branches 4of the U-shaped band 60 and on topof the block 66 and have bolt-holes for the passage of the bolts 63 64,so that by tightening up the nuts 69 the band 60 will be drawn upwardlywith relation to the block 65 and the cable thereby gripped and securedto the bucket.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination of two belts, means fordriving said belts, means for adjusting said belts relatively to eachother, and means operatively connected with the belts respectively foractuating' said adjusting' means when one belt gets in advance of theother.

2. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination of two belts, and means fordriving the same, ot' independent auxiliary driving' means, and meansfor throwing said independent auxiliary driving means into action whenone of said belts gets in advance ot' the other.

In a con'vcyer mechanism, the combination oi two belts, means fordriving said belts, auxiliary driving' mechanism for said beltsrespectively, trips operatively connected with said belts respectively,and means acted on by said trips for actuating' said auxiliary driving'mechanism when one of said trips is changing' its relation to the other.

t. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination of two belts, means fordriving' the same, auxiliary driving' mechanism for said beltsrespectively. trips carried by said belts respectively, and meansengag'eable by said trips on one side of the eonveyer for actuating saidauxiliary mechanism on the other side of the conveyer when the latterside lag's behind the former side.

5. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination of two belts, independentsheaves for driving'said belts independently, independent auxiliarydriving' mechanisms for driving' said 1 sheaves independently of saidlirst driving' mechanism, and means operatively connected with saidbelts respectively for actuating' said auxiliary driving' mechanismsrespectively when one ot' said belts g'ets in advance of the other.

6. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination ot' two belts, an auxiliarydriving mechanism connected with said driving' means and comprising' aratchet independent of said driving' means, a revolving' pawl-armconnected with and driven by said driving means,

anism for said cables comprising' a ratchetwheel, a pawl-arm withreference to which said ratchet is independently movable, a pawl on saidarm engaging said ratchet, a lever pivoted to said pawl-arm and having apawl also engaging said ratchet, a lixed cam having'a non-circularcam-groove, a stud on said lever adapted to engage in said groove, aswitch Jr'or throwing said stud into said noncircular groove, a trip onsaid switch adapted to be struck by said stud for returning the switchto its former position, and means operatively related to said cablesJfor actuating said switch to cause said stud to follow saidnon-circular groove.

8. 1n a conveyer mechanism, the combination of a sheave having' acable-g'roove, a pivoted jaw having' two lingers embedded in the side ofthe sheave and adapted to receive the cable between them, whereby thepressure of the cable on one of said lingers will cause the otherlingerto grip the cable against the side of the cable-groove.

9. In a conveyer mechanism, the combination ot' a cable, a cable-clipcomprising a thin U-shaped band passing' partially around the cable, aT-bolt having' its 'IT-head engaging in the branches of said U-band, ablock interposed between the cable and the head of said bolt and havinga slot for said head, and means for forcing said block downwardly withrelation to said band.

MARSELIUS T. ASH. lifitiiesses:

M. B. ALLs'rAn'r, F. A.' HorxiNs.

